Farm to Table or Farm to Fable? VFN members rely on one another to keep it honest.

May 30, 2016

Farm to Table or Farm to Fable? VFN members rely on one another to keep it honest.

In the wake of another ‘Farm to Fable’ exposé, we want to remind you that our dedicated Network of farmers, chefs and food producers hold one another accountable -- together we strive for transparency and accountability. As important as it is to address the problems and failings of the movement, it is equally as important to recognize and support the restaurants that are committed to their farm partners.

"A local food system provides much more than just fresh ingredients – it provides us all with direct access to the people who grow and raise our food. Vermont’s size and proximity afford us the opportunity to embed transparency, accountability and integrity into our food system. The founding members of Vermont Fresh Network relied on this opportunity when constructing our network. VFN has fostered connections between agriculture and culinary professionals for the past twenty years based on interpersonal accountability – all our member farmers and food producers have the opportunity to sanction partnership proclamations made by our chefs. Having both the farmers and chefs validate their relationship provides those checks and balances one expects from a community. As a result, consumers can be assured that declarations made by VFN member chefs about their local purchases have been validated by the farmers that grew the food. While we have lots of room for improvement along our entire food chain, Vermont consumers can draw comfort from the fact that our farmers and chefs are actively providing transparency, accountability and integrity. The Vermont Fresh Network holds our members accountable to one another and provides the general public the opportunity to choose a dining establishment committed to Vermont’s farms and food producers."